By The End Of Tonight

So how exactly does a five-song disc qualify as a full-length debut? In the case of this Texas instrumental math rock quartet, the answer is when the songs all check in at an average of six to seven minutes in length. Like Canada’s Removal or Greg Ginn’s post-Black Flag outfit Gone, BTEOT combine noodly, riff rock and spacey passages to make their bold statements without uttering one word (there are a few select screams and wails that can be heard above the din, but they are few and far between). But where this band differs from their post-punk instrumental peers is in the use of spastic jazzy jittering Gang of Four-like agit-pop. Remarkable.